My dad is coming to visit this week. This means two very important things are on my “what to make dad” menu. 1) Chili, always and 2) Caesar salad. Those are essential food groups for the guy. Anything else is icing on the cake. Plus, I always welcome the opportunity to use my huge bamboo salad bowl that we received as a wedding gift from our friends. When this bowl comes out, it’s something special!
Even though Caesar salad isn’t traditional holiday fare, I totally think you can serve it as part of a holiday menu. I love an unexpected twist on the table personally. Do you have any non-traditional dishes that are go-to’s for your family? My mother-in-law used to always serve Caesar salad as part of Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner and I swear it was one of the things that went the fastest, next to her famous croquettes. And my dad, well…let’s just say his famous Caesar salad and chili make an appearance at every Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve gathering.
I’ve made a couple vegan Caesar salad recipes over the years (one of which is in my cookbook), but I think this version is my best rendition yet. Recipes are always works in progress for me and I find each time I make it, I’m always trying new things. In addition to a new dressing, I also added roasted chickpea croutons and a nut and seed based parmesan cheese. I used a blend of traditional romaine lettuce with non-traditional Lacinato kale (destemmed of course). This way you have the classic flavour of romaine with the nutritional boost of the kale, without scaring anyone away (ahem, dad). I love the two tone greens in the bowl too. It’s a great make ahead salad because you can prep everything the day before (except for the roasted chickpeas) and then just mix it up the day of your event!
The first time I made this dressing, I actually used double the quantities you’ll see in the recipe below. However, I found that it made way too much (I had half leftover after mixing the salad), so I cut the dressing ingredients in half and it still worked out fine in the blender. I’m just mentioning this in case you are wondering about making a larger batch for a crowd – this dressing doubles beautifully!
I had a lot of fun with the photoshoot for this recipe, so I’ll let the photos do the rest of the talking.
And in case I’m not back again this week, I’d like to wish my American readers a lovely Thanksgiving! Thank you for coming here each week and eagerly trying out so many of the recipes I share. If you’re looking for my favourite Thanksgiving recipes, you can find them here. Also check out my 3 Course Step-by-Step Vegan and Gluten-Free Holiday Menu.
Crowd-Pleasing Vegan Caesar Salad
Yield
6 small bowls
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
This is a delicious, creamy vegan Caesar salad that will wow any crowd! Everyone who’s tried it goes absolutely nuts over it, and it’s my most popular salad recipe on the blog. To take it over the top, I garnish the salad with a generous amount of crunchy Roasted Chickpea Croutons and a delectable Nut and Seed Parmesan Cheese for the ultimate vegan Caesar salad. The dressing recipe easily doubles for a larger group and it’ll keep in the fridge in a sealed container for a few days so you can make it in advance. Dressing adapted from My Vega.
Ingredients
For the Roasted Chickpea Croutons:
- 1 (14-ounce/398 mL) can chickpeas (or 1 1/2 cups cooked), drained and rinsed
- 1 teaspoon (5 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
For the Caesar Dressing (makes 3/4-1 cup):
- 1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked overnight
- 1/4 cup (60 mL) water
- 2 tablespoons (30 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon (15 mL) lemon juice
- 1/2 tablespoon (7.5 mL) Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 small garlic clove (you can add another if you like it super potent)
- 1/2 tablespoon (7.5 mL) vegan Worcestershire sauce (I use Wizard's gluten-free brand)
- 2 teaspoons capers
- 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt and pepper, or to taste
For the Nut and Seed Parmesan Cheese:
- 1/3 cup raw cashews
- 2 tablespoons hulled hemp seeds
- 1 small garlic clove
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon (15 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- fine grain sea salt, to taste
For the lettuce:
- 1 small/medium bunch lacinato kale, destemmed (5 cups chopped)
- 2 small heads romaine lettuce (10 cups chopped)
Directions
- Soak cashews in a bowl of water overnight, or for at least a few hours. Drain and rinse.
- Roast chickpea croutons: Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Drain and rinse chickpeas. Place chickpeas in a tea towel and rub dry (it's okay if some skins fall off). Place onto large rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle on oil and roll around to coat. Sprinkle on the garlic powder, salt, and optional cayenne. Toss to coat. Roast for 20 minutes at 400°F (200°C), then gently roll the chickpeas around in the baking sheet. Roast for another 10 to 20 minutes, until lightly golden. They will firm up as they cool.
- Prepare the dressing: Add the cashews and all other dressing ingredients (except salt) into a high-speed blender, and blend on high until the dressing is super smooth. You can add a splash of water if necessary to get it blending. Add salt to taste and adjust other seasonings, if desired. Set aside.
- Prepare the Parmesan cheese: Add cashews and garlic into a mini food processor and process until finely chopped. Now add in the rest of the ingredients and pulse until the mixture is combined. Salt to taste.
- Prepare the lettuce: Destem the kale and then finely chop the leaves. Wash and dry in a salad spinner. Place into extra large bowl. Chop up the romaine into bite-sized pieces. Rinse and then spin dry. Place into bowl along with kale. You should have roughly 5 cups chopped kale and 10 cups chopped romaine.
- Assemble: Add dressing onto lettuce and toss until fully coated. Season with a pinch of salt and mix again. Now sprinkle on the roasted chickpeas and the Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.
Tip:
- Be sure to check the label to ensure your Worcestershire Sauce is gluten-free (if necessary) as not many are. I use Wizard`s Gluten-Free Organic Worcestershire Sauce.
- The dressing thickens when chilled, so be sure to leave it at room temperature to soften before using.
Made the salad dressing and loved it! Used 2 cloves of garlic.
So glad you enjoyed it, Peggy!
Made this exactly like the recipe listed and it was SOOOO delicious. I’ve made chickpea croutons one other time and they were totally grainy, but this time I left them in the warm oven to cool and they were incredible. This was my first time using soaked cashews in a recipe and the dressing was so delicious! Such a great recipe. My husband loved it as well.
I’m glad it turned out so well for you, Lyndsay!! (Even the chickpea croutons this time around!)
This looks delicious! I’m having people over for dinner Sunday and will definitely try it. It looks like it’s probably not big enough to be a stand alone entree though. What would you recommend as gluten free an accompaniment or entree to go with it?
Hey Christina, I think this may be getting to you too late (so sorry!), but there are so many great possibilities that I’m sure what ever you ended up doing was fantastic. For future brainstorming, soup and salad is always a classic pairing, and some gluten-free/gluten-free-option soups that I think would make particularly great accompaniments to the Vegan Caesar Salad include my Summer Harvest Tortilla Soup (The Oh She Glows Cookbook p. 135), 10-Spice Vegetable Soup, and Cream of Tomato Soup (p. 141). My Favourite Vegan Chili would also work well. Another “lighter” pairing option I’d recommend is my Crispy Smashed Potatoes with Avocado Garlic Aioli. For entrees, you could again go the classic route and serve the salad as a pasta accompaniment (for a killer tomato sauce recipe, I highly recommend my Fail-Proof Marinara Sauce, p. 175 from Oh She Glows Every Day) topped with my Cashew or Pepita Vegan Parmesan (p. 267).
This is the best dressing I’ve ever had. I think I may have it everyday for the rest of my life. Even my 2 year old devours her salad! I don’t even need the vegan parm and have yet to make the “croutons.” We can’t have citrus so used 1 tsp of white vinegar. I also tried it with half the oil and was amazing!!!! LOVE this!!!!
This dressing is AMAZING! I am trying to eat more veggies so last night I googled salad dressings and recipes. For some reason I’m really craving a chaser salad (probably bc I’m a salad novice and I want to ease into this new salad spree) I’m so glad I made this!
I forgot to buy a lemon and added an extra garlic clove bc I ran out of garlic powder.
I was literally scraping out the blender and licking it clean. Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed it, Abby!
Tried this last night with my mom, and we thought it was spectacular! I don’t know how you managed to create a dressing that was vegan and tasted better than the real thing. The only thing I might leave out in the future is the chickpea croutons, as I thought the salad was good enough without them. Thanks for an awesome recipe that will definitely be made again.
Thanks for the great comment, Eva! I’m so happy you and your mom enjoyed the salad. We absolutely love it around here, too–so it’s always great to see it win over more fans! :)
Hi! Can you sub the Worcestershire sauce for anything? Thanks!
Hi Selena, A couple of readers have used Braggs Aminos as a substitute, and really enjoyed the results! Others have successfully swapped in soy sauce, white miso, and balsamic. If you decide to experiment, please let us know how it goes. :)
Hello. My question is do you soak all the cashews for this recipe?! Including the cashews for the parm?
I’m allergic to cashew … could I use walnut, almond , or sunflower seed ?
what do you think?
thanks
This was so good! I think it’s better the next day after it’s been chilled.
BEST DRESSING! Even my non-vegan friends prefer this recipe and ask for it all the time. Best part is, a pre-dressed salad can sit in the fridge over night with next to no wilting! You nailed this recipe, I make it often. Thank you for all your recipes! Truly Wonderful.
Thanks so much for the great comment, Joelle!! I’m glad you enjoy this recipe so much–and your non-vegan friends, too. :)
I’m making this for Thanksgiving, looks great!I was thinking of adding some roasted Brussel sprouts and doing just kale and no romaine since I find romaine bland, do you think that would work?
hi!
i am very excited to make this for the 1st time as i am bringing it to a dinner party at our friends house and they are vegan.
can i make the whole thing ahead of time? if not…what are your recommendations for prepping ahead of time?
Hi Kristen, I’m not sure when your dinner party was—apologies if this is coming too late! Although I find this salad is best served immediately once it’s all put together, it’s a great make-ahead salad because you can prep everything separately the day before (except for the roasted chickpeas) and then just mix it up the day of your event.
How important is the nutritional yeast in the dressing? Is there something else I can sub, or can I leave it out? I follow the Medical Medium vegan diet, and he says nutritional yeast is pure MSG, so I don’t consume it.
Hey Shannon, The nutritional yeast is used in the vegan parmesan cheese topping, and not the dressing itself. As the “parmesan” is really optional, you can definitely just leave it off your salad to avoid the nutritional yeast. :) Hope that helps!
Yay! Thanks!! I can’t wait to make it. Your recipes are staples at our dinner table!
When you say the dressing easily doubles for a large salad, do you mean that the recipe here makes double the amount already? Or you would have to double the ingredients for a big salad?
Hi Diane, I mean that you can easily double the dressing recipe by doubling the ingredients for a bigger salad. :) As written, the dressing recipe is perfect for 5-6 small bowls. I hope that clarifies things!
This was great! Tough to find vegan Worcestershire but if you live near a sprouts, they had it! As a vegetarian it’s tough to find a caesar salad, this one hit the spot. It is best for a large group to make all at once since you can’t really assemble too far in advance. I’ll make again!
I made this last night for Christmas Eve dinner for my (totally non-vegan) family, and it was a huge hit! I hadn’t realized how much I missed caesar salads since going vegan a couple of years ago, and this compleeeetely hit the spot for me, too. THANK YOU!
Aw, I’m so happy to hear it hit the spot, Leah!! (For you, AND everyone else!) Hope you’ve been having a happy holiday season. :)
Hi Angela – I made your Chakra Caesar Salad with Nutty Herb Croutons from your first book as the starter for dinner tonight. The croutons were amazing! Something strange happened with the dressing. It was really, really think – more like a paste or a very thick dip. I added more lemon juice and olive oil and even water (which the recipe didn’t call for, but I was desperate!). This was my first time making this dressing. Any ideas as to what happened?
My son, Nathan made this for our Christmas dinner. It was outstanding.
Oh, I’m so pleased to hear that, Bettylynn. Happy holidays to you!
This is seriously crazy delicious. I can take or leave the chickpeas (maybe just throw them in plain) but I could slather this dressing on just about anything!